--- title: Configure Providers with the Datadog Operator description: Datadog, the leading service for cloud-scale monitoring. breadcrumbs: >- Docs > Containers > Datadog Operator > Configure Providers with the Datadog Operator --- > For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.datadoghq.com/llms.txt). # Configure Providers with the Datadog Operator A *provider* identifies an environment or platform that needs a specific set of customizations to the Agent configuration. A provider is warranted when the environment imposes requirements or restrictions the defaults do not satisfy: a managed Kubernetes service (`eks`, `aks`), a Kubernetes distribution (`openshift`), a node OS without kernel sources (`gke-cos`), a restricted managed environment with a workload allowlist and a fixed node OS (`gke-autopilot`), or a platform-specific Agent behavior (`eks-ec2-use-hostname-from-file`). Setting a provider applies that set of customizations to the Agents it covers, whether across the whole cluster or only the nodes a [DatadogAgentProfile](https://docs.datadoghq.com/containers/datadog_operator/datadog_agent_profiles.md) targets. This page describes the supported provider model, which is distinct from the legacy [introspection](https://github.com/DataDog/datadog-operator/blob/main/docs/introspection.md) feature (one DaemonSet per node provider), which is deprecated and no longer active on the default reconciliation path. ## Provider scope{% #provider-scope %} A provider applies at one of two scopes, both expressed through the single `agent.datadoghq.com/cluster-provider` annotation: - **Cluster scope**: set on (or detected for) the `DatadogAgent`. Applies to the whole cluster. Used for cluster-wide providers such as `eks`, `openshift`, `aks`, and `gke-autopilot` on an Autopilot cluster. - **Node scope**: set on a [DatadogAgentProfile](https://docs.datadoghq.com/containers/datadog_operator/datadog_agent_profiles.md) (DAP). Applies only to the subset of nodes the profile targets. Used for node variations such as `gke-cos`. The annotation key is the same in both cases; the scope is determined by the object it is set on. ## Setting a provider{% #setting-a-provider %} There are three ways a provider is established, in increasing order of user intent. ### Automatic detection{% #automatic-detection %} For cluster-scope providers, the Operator detects the provider from the labels of the node the Operator pod runs on and applies the matching configuration automatically. No annotation is required. Available in Operator v1.29.0+. | Provider | Detected from node label | | ------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------ | | `eks` | any `eks.amazonaws.com/*` or `alpha.eksctl.io/*` label | | `aks` | any `kubernetes.azure.com/*` label | | `openshift` (`openshift-`) | `node.openshift.io/os_id` | | `default` | none of the above | The detected provider is recorded in `status.clusterProvider` on the `DatadogAgent` (see Effective provider resolution). `gke-cos`, `eks-ec2-use-hostname-from-file`, and `gke-autopilot` are **not** auto-detected; they must be declared explicitly. ### On a DatadogAgent{% #on-a-datadogagent %} Declare or override the cluster provider with the `agent.datadoghq.com/cluster-provider` annotation on the `DatadogAgent`. This mirrors the Helm chart's `providers.*` configuration and is also the correction mechanism when auto-detection cannot determine the provider. ```yaml apiVersion: datadoghq.com/v2alpha1 kind: DatadogAgent metadata: name: datadog annotations: agent.datadoghq.com/cluster-provider: eks spec: global: credentials: apiSecret: secretName: datadog-secret keyName: api-key ``` ### On a DatadogAgentProfile{% #on-a-datadogagentprofile %} Declare a node-scope provider by setting the same annotation on a [DatadogAgentProfile](https://docs.datadoghq.com/containers/datadog_operator/datadog_agent_profiles.md#declaring-a-provider). The value is propagated to the DaemonSet the profile generates and applies only to the nodes the profile's `profileAffinity` selects. This is safe **only if** `profileAffinity` **correctly selects the nodes that match the declared provider**. The Operator does not verify that the selected nodes match the annotation. ```yaml apiVersion: datadoghq.com/v1alpha1 kind: DatadogAgentProfile metadata: name: gke-cos-profile annotations: agent.datadoghq.com/cluster-provider: gke-cos spec: profileAffinity: profileNodeAffinity: - key: cloud.google.com/gke-os-distribution operator: In values: - cos ``` ## Effective provider resolution{% #effective-provider-resolution %} When more than one source could supply a provider, the Operator resolves the effective value by source: 1. A user-specified value (annotation on the `DatadogAgent`, or on a `DatadogAgentProfile` for its node subset) always wins. 1. Otherwise the auto-detected value is used. The resolved value is recorded in the `DatadogAgent` status: ```yaml status: clusterProvider: eks conditions: - type: ClusterProviderDetected status: "True" reason: ProviderDetected # or "UserSpecified" when set via annotation message: Cluster provider detected as "eks". ``` ## Supported providers{% #supported-providers %} The following is the exhaustive list of provider values the Operator acts on. All values are the value of the `agent.datadoghq.com/cluster-provider` annotation. | Provider | Scope | Resolution | Effect | Helm equivalent | | -------------------------------- | --------------------------- | ----------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | -------------------------------------------- | | `gke-cos` | Cluster (DDA) or Node (DAP) | Annotation only | Drops the `/usr/src` volume from the OOM Kill, TCP Queue Length, and GPU checks (node OS has no kernel sources) | `providers.gke.cos` | | `eks-ec2-use-hostname-from-file` | Cluster (DDA) or Node (DAP) | Annotation only | Adds `DD_HOSTNAME_FILE` and a host mount of the cloud-init instance-id file so the Agent derives a stable hostname | `providers.eks.ec2.useHostnameFromFile` | | `eks` | Cluster (DDA) | Detection or annotation | Enables [control plane monitoring](https://docs.datadoghq.com/containers/kubernetes/control_plane.md?tab=datadogoperator#EKS): API Server, Controller Manager, Scheduler | `providers.eks.controlPlaneMonitoring` | | `openshift` (`openshift-`) | Cluster (DDA) | Detection or annotation | Enables [control plane monitoring](https://docs.datadoghq.com/containers/kubernetes/control_plane.md?tab=datadogoperator#EKS): API Server, Controller Manager, Scheduler, and etcd | `providers.openshift.controlPlaneMonitoring` | | `aks` | Cluster (DDA) | Detection or annotation | Sets the mandatory `DD_ADMISSION_CONTROLLER_ADD_AKS_SELECTORS=true` environment variable on the Cluster Agent | `providers.aks.enabled` | | `gke-autopilot` | Cluster (DDA) | Annotation only | Full GKE Autopilot workload adaptation (volume, env var, path, image, and PriorityClass changes). See [Datadog Operator on GKE Autopilot](https://docs.datadoghq.com/containers/kubernetes/distributions.md?tab=datadogoperator#autopilot) | `providers.gke.autopilot` | | `windows` | Node (DAP) | Annotation only | Builds a Windows-compatible node Agent DaemonSet on the targeted Windows nodes: Linux-only containers, mounts, and security context are stripped, and a Windows base image and init config are applied. Available in Operator v1.30.0+ | None | Cluster scope applies the provider to every node, so use it only when all nodes match the provider (for example, a cluster where every node runs Container-Optimized OS). Otherwise, set the provider on a DAP that targets the matching nodes. ## Examples{% #examples %} - **Cluster-wide, auto-detected**: an EKS cluster gets `eks` from detection and enables [control plane monitoring](https://docs.datadoghq.com/containers/kubernetes/control_plane.md?tab=datadogoperator#EKS) with no user configuration. - **Cluster-wide, declared**: set `agent.datadoghq.com/cluster-provider: aks` on the `DatadogAgent` to apply the required AKS admission controller selectors. - **Node OS variation**: set `agent.datadoghq.com/cluster-provider: gke-cos` on a DAP that targets the COS node pool. - **Granular behavior**: set `agent.datadoghq.com/cluster-provider: eks-ec2-use-hostname-from-file` on a DAP targeting EC2 nodes that need file-based hostname resolution. - **Restricted managed environment**: set `agent.datadoghq.com/cluster-provider: gke-autopilot` on the `DatadogAgent` for an Autopilot cluster (see the [GKE Autopilot guide](https://docs.datadoghq.com/containers/kubernetes/distributions.md?tab=datadogoperator#autopilot)).